1 00:00:01,770 --> 00:00:02,970 Gift biz unwrapped. 2 00:00:03,270 --> 00:00:07,860 You're listening to our one-year anniversary edition episode 52. 3 00:00:08,720 --> 00:00:11,480 They are not just buying your product. 4 00:00:11,540 --> 00:00:13,120 They're actually buying you. 5 00:00:13,790 --> 00:00:15,230 Hi, this is John Lee, 6 00:00:15,230 --> 00:00:17,420 Dumas of entrepreneur on fire, 7 00:00:17,420 --> 00:00:19,970 and you're listening to the gift of biz unwrap. 8 00:00:19,970 --> 00:00:24,680 And now it's time to light it up. 9 00:00:24,680 --> 00:00:26,210 Welcome to gift biz, 10 00:00:26,330 --> 00:00:30,200 unwrapped your source for industry specific insights and advice to develop 11 00:00:30,200 --> 00:00:31,310 and grow your business. 12 00:00:31,670 --> 00:00:33,140 And now here's your host, 13 00:00:33,290 --> 00:00:34,340 Sue Monheit. 14 00:00:35,000 --> 00:00:35,390 Hi there. 15 00:00:35,530 --> 00:00:39,170 I'm Sue and welcome to this unwrapped podcast. 16 00:00:39,530 --> 00:00:42,470 Whether you own a brick and mortar store sell online or 17 00:00:42,470 --> 00:00:43,940 are just getting started, 18 00:00:43,970 --> 00:00:47,570 you'll discover new insight to gain traction and to grow your 19 00:00:47,570 --> 00:00:50,330 business. I am so excited you guys, 20 00:00:50,330 --> 00:00:54,410 because it was one year ago today that I started this 21 00:00:54,410 --> 00:00:56,780 podcast. So super, 22 00:00:56,780 --> 00:00:59,750 super special day in terms of the podcast. 23 00:00:59,780 --> 00:01:00,830 And because of that, 24 00:01:00,830 --> 00:01:02,330 I have a super, 25 00:01:02,330 --> 00:01:03,890 super special guest. 26 00:01:04,310 --> 00:01:06,260 Her name is Pam Newell, 27 00:01:06,620 --> 00:01:07,610 Pam and her husband, 28 00:01:07,610 --> 00:01:12,290 Tom started their gift basket business in 1979 out of their 29 00:01:12,290 --> 00:01:14,300 house. In 1981, 30 00:01:14,360 --> 00:01:18,800 they edit a retail location and in 1983 coffee house and 31 00:01:18,800 --> 00:01:19,340 a bakery, 32 00:01:19,820 --> 00:01:22,970 they continue to expand to four retail locations, 33 00:01:23,120 --> 00:01:26,960 plus an assembly plant before selling in 2005. 34 00:01:27,440 --> 00:01:29,450 But their journey wasn't over yet. 35 00:01:29,570 --> 00:01:33,050 The sale of their business was a calculated step along the 36 00:01:33,050 --> 00:01:36,500 way. Pam and Tom had continued to make a big impact 37 00:01:36,500 --> 00:01:40,730 on the industry they own and host the national gift basket 38 00:01:40,730 --> 00:01:44,690 rally where hundreds of gift providers unite to learn basics and 39 00:01:44,690 --> 00:01:49,370 new techniques network with peers and shop for the latest products. 40 00:01:49,880 --> 00:01:53,180 Pam also has been called upon by state farm insurance to 41 00:01:53,180 --> 00:01:57,080 help new hires learn customer service and customer retention. 42 00:01:57,350 --> 00:02:01,040 She, I know from personal experience has a wealth of knowledge 43 00:02:01,070 --> 00:02:03,920 and I am so excited to dive into this today. 44 00:02:03,920 --> 00:02:06,680 So all of you guys can hear from her, 45 00:02:06,920 --> 00:02:08,870 everything that she knows about the industry. 46 00:02:09,230 --> 00:02:10,250 Welcome to the show, 47 00:02:10,250 --> 00:02:11,540 Pam, Thank you, 48 00:02:11,540 --> 00:02:15,020 Sue. And congratulations on one year. 49 00:02:15,080 --> 00:02:16,010 It's amazing. 50 00:02:16,010 --> 00:02:17,330 I'm so proud of you. 51 00:02:17,810 --> 00:02:18,350 Thank you. 52 00:02:18,350 --> 00:02:20,360 I can't believe it's been a year already, 53 00:02:20,390 --> 00:02:22,520 but these years keep going faster and faster. 54 00:02:22,520 --> 00:02:23,630 I'm not sure what that's all about. 55 00:02:24,290 --> 00:02:28,400 Well, I think that it's because we're both doing what we 56 00:02:28,400 --> 00:02:31,160 love and we're helping people along the way. 57 00:02:31,160 --> 00:02:33,380 So I think that that's so important. 58 00:02:33,710 --> 00:02:35,660 I think you're right when the passion's there, 59 00:02:35,870 --> 00:02:36,950 it doesn't feel like work, 60 00:02:36,950 --> 00:02:38,120 right? It doesn't. 61 00:02:38,210 --> 00:02:41,420 And hopefully time keeps moving on, 62 00:02:41,420 --> 00:02:46,100 but hopefully my age and your age does not That program. 63 00:02:46,100 --> 00:02:46,610 For sure. 64 00:02:48,080 --> 00:02:49,340 Well, as our listeners know, 65 00:02:49,340 --> 00:02:51,800 we like to align the conversation around the life of a 66 00:02:51,800 --> 00:02:53,060 motivational candle. 67 00:02:53,210 --> 00:02:54,350 The light shines on you, 68 00:02:54,350 --> 00:02:57,860 Pam, while you share your stories and your experiences. 69 00:02:57,890 --> 00:02:59,320 So are you ready to light up? 70 00:02:59,680 --> 00:03:01,450 Oh, all right. 71 00:03:01,810 --> 00:03:05,020 Describe to us what your motivational candle looks like. 72 00:03:05,050 --> 00:03:07,780 What color is it and what quote would be on your 73 00:03:07,780 --> 00:03:12,420 calendar? My candle would be made of natural wax. 74 00:03:12,570 --> 00:03:19,050 It would be upscale filling with fragrance of warm fruit cobbler, 75 00:03:19,230 --> 00:03:24,330 which would create a wonderful aroma in my home and office. 76 00:03:24,570 --> 00:03:29,940 The color would be probably burnt orange because I'm really an 77 00:03:29,940 --> 00:03:31,140 autumn person. 78 00:03:31,560 --> 00:03:33,990 My candle would be hand poured, 79 00:03:34,410 --> 00:03:35,580 long burning, 80 00:03:35,940 --> 00:03:40,950 proudly made in the USA and shared by all my friends 81 00:03:40,950 --> 00:03:41,640 and everyone. 82 00:03:41,640 --> 00:03:46,290 I coach along the way that would say thousands of candles 83 00:03:46,290 --> 00:03:48,810 can be lit from a single candle. 84 00:03:48,840 --> 00:03:51,990 And the light of the candle will not be shortened. 85 00:03:52,320 --> 00:03:55,950 Happiness, never decreases by being shared. 86 00:03:56,400 --> 00:03:58,230 That would be a quote from Buddha, 87 00:03:58,290 --> 00:04:00,780 which I'm not always a fan of Buddha, 88 00:04:00,810 --> 00:04:02,040 but I love the quote. 89 00:04:02,970 --> 00:04:03,990 There you go. 90 00:04:04,050 --> 00:04:05,370 And since I know you, 91 00:04:05,370 --> 00:04:07,320 I know that you apply this in your life, 92 00:04:07,320 --> 00:04:09,000 but why don't you share with our listeners, 93 00:04:09,000 --> 00:04:10,890 why this is an important quote for you? 94 00:04:11,160 --> 00:04:16,350 Well, because I spend my day hoping that I can help 95 00:04:16,920 --> 00:04:21,030 one or two people along the way with their success stories. 96 00:04:21,060 --> 00:04:24,690 God has blessed Tom and I with so much, 97 00:04:24,840 --> 00:04:27,570 and we hope that we can share that with others. 98 00:04:28,080 --> 00:04:30,420 Wonderful. And you're doing that all the time already, 99 00:04:30,420 --> 00:04:32,370 so, and we're going to dive into more of it, 100 00:04:32,370 --> 00:04:33,270 right this second. 101 00:04:33,270 --> 00:04:34,050 So are you ready? 102 00:04:35,250 --> 00:04:36,150 I hope so. 103 00:04:38,040 --> 00:04:39,930 You have no idea what I have planned for you. 104 00:04:39,990 --> 00:04:40,710 Pretty scary. 105 00:04:42,120 --> 00:04:42,450 All right. 106 00:04:42,450 --> 00:04:46,170 So take us back because it's really interesting for all of 107 00:04:46,170 --> 00:04:48,750 us to understand how people choose in the beginning, 108 00:04:48,750 --> 00:04:51,570 what they're going to be spending so many hours of their 109 00:04:51,570 --> 00:04:54,660 life on you started a gift basket business. 110 00:04:55,170 --> 00:04:58,110 I did Y how Did that come about? 111 00:04:58,110 --> 00:05:01,260 Where did that thought come from and talk us through the 112 00:05:01,260 --> 00:05:02,700 story of how it evolved? 113 00:05:02,910 --> 00:05:04,740 Well, in 1979, 114 00:05:04,740 --> 00:05:05,760 I had two jobs. 115 00:05:06,090 --> 00:05:10,620 I worked for roadway express as a payroll manager and with 116 00:05:10,620 --> 00:05:12,570 the fear of being laid off, 117 00:05:12,690 --> 00:05:18,180 I also sold real estate and we all know that between 118 00:05:18,270 --> 00:05:20,820 October and the first spring, 119 00:05:20,850 --> 00:05:24,690 there really isn't a need for a lot of houses to 120 00:05:24,690 --> 00:05:26,490 be sold or marketed. 121 00:05:26,670 --> 00:05:31,440 And so that was a downtime for me and Tom was 122 00:05:31,440 --> 00:05:32,430 a contractor. 123 00:05:32,580 --> 00:05:36,570 So not too many people wanted new kitchens or commercial work 124 00:05:36,570 --> 00:05:37,980 done during that time. 125 00:05:37,980 --> 00:05:39,720 And as you know, 126 00:05:39,750 --> 00:05:41,760 we had three children, 127 00:05:41,820 --> 00:05:42,810 small children, 128 00:05:43,020 --> 00:05:46,710 and they all thought that they should have Christmas, 129 00:05:46,890 --> 00:05:48,270 like all the other kids. 130 00:05:48,720 --> 00:05:50,310 Now, why would they think that? 131 00:05:50,370 --> 00:05:53,250 Yeah, that's all I can say. 132 00:05:54,630 --> 00:05:55,650 Along the way. 133 00:05:55,740 --> 00:06:00,800 My grandmother had always given us homemade baskets with her goodies 134 00:06:00,800 --> 00:06:03,530 in because she didn't have a lot of money and she 135 00:06:03,530 --> 00:06:05,060 had 24 grandchildren. 136 00:06:05,300 --> 00:06:09,260 So I thought that was so marvelous that I would do 137 00:06:09,260 --> 00:06:15,260 that. And I started a gift basket business slowly finding out 138 00:06:15,260 --> 00:06:22,730 that my friends and my small business friends all wanted beautiful 139 00:06:22,730 --> 00:06:24,830 baskets, lo and behold, 140 00:06:24,830 --> 00:06:28,430 our house filled with packaged foods. 141 00:06:28,430 --> 00:06:31,520 And I had no idea of course at that time, 142 00:06:31,520 --> 00:06:32,780 how to buy wholesale. 143 00:06:33,140 --> 00:06:37,160 So it was a learning proposition and it overtook our home. 144 00:06:37,460 --> 00:06:41,840 However, our kids had Christmas in 19, 145 00:06:42,110 --> 00:06:44,060 I think it was 1982. 146 00:06:44,300 --> 00:06:47,990 Tom had a serious accident and they told him he was 147 00:06:47,990 --> 00:06:49,670 actually bedridden for a year. 148 00:06:50,060 --> 00:06:54,110 And he was told no more hammer needed a trade in 149 00:06:54,110 --> 00:06:54,800 a pen. 150 00:06:54,830 --> 00:06:59,000 And I had this great idea that we could go in 151 00:06:59,000 --> 00:07:03,560 business together because at that point I had some commercial accounts 152 00:07:04,040 --> 00:07:05,180 and, you know, 153 00:07:05,180 --> 00:07:06,860 Tom, he said, 154 00:07:06,860 --> 00:07:08,990 I will do it on one condition. 155 00:07:09,560 --> 00:07:10,700 We add coffee, 156 00:07:11,150 --> 00:07:15,650 we get a food license and we turn it into a 157 00:07:15,650 --> 00:07:19,940 profitable situation or we don't do it. 158 00:07:20,300 --> 00:07:22,970 So That's how the coffee house in bakery started. 159 00:07:23,090 --> 00:07:23,840 It did. 160 00:07:24,620 --> 00:07:25,880 It was because of him, 161 00:07:26,240 --> 00:07:31,160 his love of coffee and the muffins and the cookies. 162 00:07:31,220 --> 00:07:35,030 And we had some friends that just thought that was a 163 00:07:35,030 --> 00:07:36,110 marvelous idea. 164 00:07:36,140 --> 00:07:41,480 Even though our families did not loaning institutions did not. 165 00:07:42,140 --> 00:07:44,510 And wholesalers did not. 166 00:07:44,960 --> 00:07:48,620 So it was a struggle to get it started, 167 00:07:48,620 --> 00:07:49,280 but we did. 168 00:07:49,630 --> 00:07:53,140 And it was a struggle because you couldn't find funding or 169 00:07:53,140 --> 00:07:54,280 you couldn't find product, 170 00:07:54,280 --> 00:07:55,600 or what was the struggle all about? 171 00:07:55,840 --> 00:08:00,430 Actually, it was all of the above and lo and behold, 172 00:08:00,430 --> 00:08:05,890 we, we just kept pursuing this and went through a hardware 173 00:08:05,890 --> 00:08:11,950 association to get some gift items and started out with nothing 174 00:08:11,950 --> 00:08:13,930 but gift items. 175 00:08:14,380 --> 00:08:17,200 Once we got the coffee house up and going, 176 00:08:17,230 --> 00:08:23,260 then I added muffins and cookies and specialized in comfort baskets 177 00:08:23,470 --> 00:08:28,210 for funerals hooked up with some funeral companies and grew it 178 00:08:28,210 --> 00:08:28,900 from there. 179 00:08:29,440 --> 00:08:31,270 Would I be correct in saying then, 180 00:08:31,270 --> 00:08:32,290 because Tom had said, 181 00:08:32,290 --> 00:08:33,670 we're turning this into something, 182 00:08:33,670 --> 00:08:35,170 including products that I like. 183 00:08:35,230 --> 00:08:37,690 And then we also are going to make money that it 184 00:08:37,690 --> 00:08:40,240 took a couple of years for this whole thing to evolve, 185 00:08:40,240 --> 00:08:42,670 where you were starting to see some return for your initial 186 00:08:42,670 --> 00:08:48,820 investment. It actually took from took 16 months to turn it 187 00:08:48,820 --> 00:08:51,340 into a profitable situation. 188 00:08:51,610 --> 00:08:54,040 I had to big for the last few months so that 189 00:08:54,040 --> 00:08:55,210 he would keep me open. 190 00:08:55,530 --> 00:08:59,790 Tom is one of those people that every dollar counts. 191 00:09:00,300 --> 00:09:05,280 And he made me turn from a hobby seasonal business to 192 00:09:05,280 --> 00:09:06,510 an accountable, 193 00:09:06,660 --> 00:09:08,940 profitable, trendy business. 194 00:09:09,300 --> 00:09:10,890 And it was amazing. 195 00:09:10,920 --> 00:09:14,100 The two of us have worked together for 35 years. 196 00:09:14,100 --> 00:09:19,560 Now. We found each other's strengths and loves in this business 197 00:09:19,590 --> 00:09:23,100 and continue to work together. 198 00:09:23,190 --> 00:09:27,810 I wouldn't want another business partner or life partner in my 199 00:09:27,810 --> 00:09:31,110 life because I think I've found the best. 200 00:09:31,340 --> 00:09:32,660 Aw, that's sweet. 201 00:09:32,690 --> 00:09:34,010 You're saying that because you know, 202 00:09:34,010 --> 00:09:35,480 he's going to listen to this at some point, 203 00:09:35,480 --> 00:09:38,450 right. And I'm saying it because it's true. 204 00:09:38,690 --> 00:09:38,930 All right. 205 00:09:38,930 --> 00:09:41,930 So now you have the coffee house and the bakery, 206 00:09:41,960 --> 00:09:46,220 and then you ended up expanding into four retail locations. 207 00:09:46,490 --> 00:09:47,030 We did. 208 00:09:47,150 --> 00:09:50,930 How did you make those decisions to keep expanding and expanding? 209 00:09:50,930 --> 00:09:53,270 Because each time you expand to another location, 210 00:09:53,270 --> 00:09:56,510 you are at risk of diving into your margins and your 211 00:09:56,510 --> 00:09:58,220 profit. Absolutely. 212 00:09:58,220 --> 00:10:02,240 And it was almost like starting over every time you change 213 00:10:02,250 --> 00:10:06,110 locations because people would come by that hadn't been there for 214 00:10:06,110 --> 00:10:07,400 a while and say, 215 00:10:07,550 --> 00:10:08,000 Oh, my, 216 00:10:08,000 --> 00:10:09,080 they went out of business. 217 00:10:09,080 --> 00:10:09,800 They're gone. 218 00:10:09,980 --> 00:10:12,110 So it was marketing. 219 00:10:12,110 --> 00:10:12,800 It was, 220 00:10:13,040 --> 00:10:14,270 I hate to say this, 221 00:10:14,270 --> 00:10:15,980 but keeping in their face, 222 00:10:16,190 --> 00:10:17,630 it was networking. 223 00:10:17,630 --> 00:10:19,820 It was going to the chamber functions. 224 00:10:19,820 --> 00:10:23,300 It was keeping those ads running because back then we didn't 225 00:10:23,300 --> 00:10:25,820 have the social media that we have today. 226 00:10:26,090 --> 00:10:28,970 Right. It was growing that business. 227 00:10:29,030 --> 00:10:33,500 So it meant me hitting the pavement and talking to those 228 00:10:33,500 --> 00:10:38,840 businesses. I'm proud of what we did because it was not 229 00:10:38,840 --> 00:10:40,010 only in their face, 230 00:10:40,010 --> 00:10:43,430 but it was an item that they absolutely needed for their 231 00:10:43,430 --> 00:10:47,060 businesses. And I would suggest gift biz listeners and Pam, 232 00:10:47,060 --> 00:10:48,920 you can add to this if you'd like, 233 00:10:48,980 --> 00:10:51,770 even though there wasn't social media in that day, 234 00:10:51,770 --> 00:10:56,090 and now there is social media cannot be a crutch and 235 00:10:56,090 --> 00:10:57,680 a substitute for going out. 236 00:10:57,740 --> 00:10:58,650 If you have a logo, 237 00:10:58,670 --> 00:10:59,300 a location, 238 00:10:59,300 --> 00:11:00,440 a physical location, 239 00:11:00,440 --> 00:11:01,040 where you're, 240 00:11:01,190 --> 00:11:04,370 you are relying on the local community to come in and 241 00:11:04,370 --> 00:11:05,840 visit your shop. 242 00:11:06,200 --> 00:11:08,090 You can not just rely on social media. 243 00:11:08,090 --> 00:11:11,090 It is one of a number of things to use, 244 00:11:11,090 --> 00:11:11,810 to get people, 245 00:11:11,810 --> 00:11:13,340 to walk into your location. 246 00:11:13,370 --> 00:11:14,720 Like Pam's talking about, 247 00:11:14,720 --> 00:11:14,960 you know, 248 00:11:14,960 --> 00:11:16,490 with chamber of commerce meetings. 249 00:11:16,490 --> 00:11:19,730 Now we have BNI tip all of these networking meetings that 250 00:11:19,730 --> 00:11:21,830 we've talked about on other podcasts. 251 00:11:21,890 --> 00:11:26,450 You cannot eliminate that face-to-face content and just rely on social 252 00:11:26,450 --> 00:11:28,580 media. And I wanted to make sure to get that across. 253 00:11:28,760 --> 00:11:29,630 What do you think about that, 254 00:11:29,630 --> 00:11:31,640 Pam? I totally agree with you, 255 00:11:31,640 --> 00:11:34,550 Sue and I can't be happier that you brought that up 256 00:11:34,700 --> 00:11:36,290 in our situation. 257 00:11:36,290 --> 00:11:41,960 And in most situations they are not just buying your product. 258 00:11:42,020 --> 00:11:43,820 They're actually buying you. 259 00:11:44,180 --> 00:11:49,010 My friends became my friends because they were my customers. 260 00:11:49,130 --> 00:11:50,210 We cried with them. 261 00:11:50,210 --> 00:11:51,290 We laughed with them. 262 00:11:51,290 --> 00:11:53,090 We knew what their budgets were, 263 00:11:53,290 --> 00:11:54,730 knew what their needs were. 264 00:11:54,910 --> 00:11:58,660 And I think because I knew them on a personal basis 265 00:11:58,660 --> 00:11:59,740 face to face, 266 00:11:59,890 --> 00:12:02,410 I was able to not only grow my business, 267 00:12:02,410 --> 00:12:05,580 but help them along The power of networking, 268 00:12:05,580 --> 00:12:08,490 right. Comradery and peers and networking. 269 00:12:08,880 --> 00:12:09,270 It is, 270 00:12:09,360 --> 00:12:10,980 it absolutely is. 271 00:12:10,980 --> 00:12:14,880 And I think today in a customer service way, 272 00:12:14,910 --> 00:12:19,530 we kind of lose that personal touch if we're not careful. 273 00:12:19,530 --> 00:12:24,150 So we need to have all of these opportunities working at 274 00:12:24,150 --> 00:12:24,990 the same time. 275 00:12:25,230 --> 00:12:26,100 Right? Well, 276 00:12:26,100 --> 00:12:28,830 let's stay here right now and talk a little bit more 277 00:12:28,830 --> 00:12:31,980 about the development and the evolution of your business. 278 00:12:32,400 --> 00:12:35,880 Was there something that came up that just kind of knocked 279 00:12:35,880 --> 00:12:36,780 you to your knees? 280 00:12:36,810 --> 00:12:38,460 There was a problem that, 281 00:12:38,640 --> 00:12:39,060 you know, 282 00:12:39,060 --> 00:12:40,920 you might not have foreseen, 283 00:12:40,920 --> 00:12:45,060 it just comes at you as will happen in any business. 284 00:12:45,060 --> 00:12:46,620 Right? Absolutely. 285 00:12:46,650 --> 00:12:50,400 Can you describe something like that and tell us all how 286 00:12:50,400 --> 00:12:52,710 you were able to overcome a situation like that? 287 00:12:53,280 --> 00:12:56,880 Well, every year we looked at our business and we would 288 00:12:56,880 --> 00:13:00,330 say, how could we have grown more? 289 00:13:00,360 --> 00:13:04,710 What could we have done differently to have maybe not turned 290 00:13:04,710 --> 00:13:09,660 business away or not have the correct inventory? 291 00:13:09,750 --> 00:13:13,500 So it was always something that we had to look at 292 00:13:13,530 --> 00:13:15,000 on a weekly basis, 293 00:13:15,120 --> 00:13:16,590 a monthly and a yearly, 294 00:13:17,040 --> 00:13:17,340 you know, 295 00:13:17,340 --> 00:13:19,290 a lot of people come to you and say, 296 00:13:19,290 --> 00:13:24,960 wow, outgrowing your location or outgrowing your storage or running out 297 00:13:24,960 --> 00:13:28,050 of inventory is a good problem to have, 298 00:13:28,440 --> 00:13:32,970 I guess I just never liked that term because to me 299 00:13:33,240 --> 00:13:37,050 it was not a good problem to have by adding the 300 00:13:37,050 --> 00:13:38,130 assembly plant. 301 00:13:38,130 --> 00:13:41,850 We thought we had conquered a lot of struggles. 302 00:13:42,180 --> 00:13:45,390 We had a contract with Shire pharmaceutical, 303 00:13:45,630 --> 00:13:48,510 and we sold over 12,000 304 00:13:48,750 --> 00:13:51,240 products a month to them. 305 00:13:51,300 --> 00:13:54,120 It was a great contract for three years. 306 00:13:54,180 --> 00:13:55,830 We needed the extra space, 307 00:13:55,830 --> 00:13:57,090 a 7,500 308 00:13:57,090 --> 00:14:02,280 square foot assembly plant to just handle their needs as long 309 00:14:02,280 --> 00:14:04,200 with our other 3,400 310 00:14:04,230 --> 00:14:06,390 corporate accounts that we had gotten. 311 00:14:06,600 --> 00:14:10,830 But then all of a sudden we found ourselves getting hit 312 00:14:10,830 --> 00:14:11,970 with nine 11, 313 00:14:12,300 --> 00:14:15,960 which when nine 11 hit all the big corporations, 314 00:14:15,990 --> 00:14:20,340 all the pharmaceutical companies stopped doing what they were doing and 315 00:14:20,340 --> 00:14:24,180 spending millions of dollars and cut back, 316 00:14:24,630 --> 00:14:26,790 which made a big impact on us, 317 00:14:27,120 --> 00:14:32,670 which suddenly fear took over my body and took over Tom's 318 00:14:32,670 --> 00:14:33,750 body. We thought, 319 00:14:33,750 --> 00:14:35,370 well, what could we do? 320 00:14:35,550 --> 00:14:38,640 The first thing that came to mind is we had gotten 321 00:14:38,640 --> 00:14:44,330 very lax on marketing for new clients because of the fact 322 00:14:44,350 --> 00:14:46,230 we had more than we could handle. 323 00:14:46,230 --> 00:14:49,860 So I suddenly had to put my thinking cap on, 324 00:14:49,860 --> 00:14:53,480 go back out network to a different occupations, 325 00:14:54,020 --> 00:14:57,680 to grow the business back up to the fact that we 326 00:14:57,680 --> 00:15:01,790 were making the same kind of money to keep our 31 327 00:15:01,790 --> 00:15:04,700 full-time employees with a paycheck every Friday. 328 00:15:04,760 --> 00:15:06,890 So it was a challenge, 329 00:15:06,920 --> 00:15:10,850 but we were able to conquer it with going back to 330 00:15:10,850 --> 00:15:15,230 do things that we normally used to do when we began. 331 00:15:15,320 --> 00:15:19,070 And that was called walking the streets and marketing. 332 00:15:19,930 --> 00:15:22,210 I'm really glad you brought this up, 333 00:15:22,240 --> 00:15:26,110 Pam, because what I'm taking from your story is that it's 334 00:15:26,110 --> 00:15:26,890 so easy. 335 00:15:26,980 --> 00:15:27,190 I mean, 336 00:15:27,190 --> 00:15:30,520 you just heard Pam rattle off the number of clients she 337 00:15:30,520 --> 00:15:33,040 had and some really big ones, 338 00:15:33,040 --> 00:15:35,470 one overwhelmingly big one of course. 339 00:15:35,560 --> 00:15:39,670 And it's very easy to become really comfortable in that manner. 340 00:15:39,670 --> 00:15:39,970 I mean, 341 00:15:39,970 --> 00:15:43,690 it's contracted business and everything is going along and you kind 342 00:15:43,690 --> 00:15:47,380 of drift into this more maintenance stage because things are so 343 00:15:47,380 --> 00:15:49,600 good, but you have to be careful. 344 00:15:49,600 --> 00:15:53,290 And I want to just caution all gift biz listeners that, 345 00:15:53,740 --> 00:15:54,070 you know, 346 00:15:54,070 --> 00:15:57,520 if you are running your business off of one, 347 00:15:57,520 --> 00:16:01,390 two, maybe even four large customers, 348 00:16:01,390 --> 00:16:02,140 and that's it, 349 00:16:02,230 --> 00:16:05,920 you are in a really risky situation because you lose a 350 00:16:05,920 --> 00:16:09,460 couple of those and you may not even have your costs 351 00:16:09,490 --> 00:16:10,660 covered anymore. 352 00:16:10,690 --> 00:16:12,190 So you always, 353 00:16:12,220 --> 00:16:15,160 always want to be fueling the funnel, 354 00:16:15,190 --> 00:16:18,340 right? You always want to get more people into the funnel 355 00:16:18,730 --> 00:16:20,740 and never become complacent, 356 00:16:20,770 --> 00:16:22,840 just like how Pam is talking about. 357 00:16:23,020 --> 00:16:25,600 And the other thing I really liked about what you talked 358 00:16:25,600 --> 00:16:29,050 about Pam is once you recognize that this was happening, 359 00:16:29,230 --> 00:16:31,600 how did you overcome it back to the basics? 360 00:16:32,080 --> 00:16:34,630 Lots of prayer and lots of work. 361 00:16:35,380 --> 00:16:38,590 Yeah. And feed on the street again and going out there 362 00:16:38,620 --> 00:16:41,380 one more time and you didn't cave either. 363 00:16:41,740 --> 00:16:44,620 No, that's not my way of doing business. 364 00:16:44,860 --> 00:16:47,050 Thought about selling everything we owned, 365 00:16:47,080 --> 00:16:49,150 but Yeah. 366 00:16:49,180 --> 00:16:53,500 Are there any other takeaways that you would suggest or recommend 367 00:16:53,500 --> 00:16:54,100 to our listeners? 368 00:16:54,610 --> 00:17:00,430 Yeah. Make sure that you're hitting multiple occupations when you're selling, 369 00:17:00,580 --> 00:17:05,140 because if you just streamline it to pharmaceutical sales, 370 00:17:05,140 --> 00:17:10,210 which we had several large companies Shire being the largest one, 371 00:17:10,420 --> 00:17:13,750 we could have really been in bigger trouble, 372 00:17:13,780 --> 00:17:15,190 but I still had realtors. 373 00:17:15,190 --> 00:17:16,720 I still had car dealers. 374 00:17:16,720 --> 00:17:23,530 I still had spas and small manufacturing companies that needed us 375 00:17:23,530 --> 00:17:28,300 on a daily basis for their employees needs and their clients. 376 00:17:28,300 --> 00:17:31,810 So God took care of us that we were really lucky. 377 00:17:32,620 --> 00:17:35,770 So really what you're saying is twofold have a customer base 378 00:17:35,770 --> 00:17:38,560 that is smaller accounts to larger accounts. 379 00:17:38,620 --> 00:17:41,830 And then also have a customer base that spans a number 380 00:17:41,830 --> 00:17:43,570 of different types of industries. 381 00:17:43,690 --> 00:17:48,940 Absolutely. And you may want to broaden to not just in 382 00:17:49,110 --> 00:17:52,020 case we didn't do just gift baskets. 383 00:17:52,350 --> 00:17:55,800 We also were teaching around the country. 384 00:17:55,890 --> 00:17:56,190 You know, 385 00:17:56,190 --> 00:17:59,520 we had a little bit of versatility in our income. 386 00:17:59,520 --> 00:18:01,830 So you may want to think about that. 387 00:18:02,190 --> 00:18:03,950 Yeah. We're going to get to that too, 388 00:18:03,950 --> 00:18:06,530 but I don't want to leave here without asking you one 389 00:18:06,530 --> 00:18:09,380 question. I want to stay on the gift baskets and the 390 00:18:09,380 --> 00:18:10,010 retail shop. 391 00:18:10,040 --> 00:18:11,420 Although I know it wasn't just gift baskets. 392 00:18:11,420 --> 00:18:13,130 Okay. So offered St. 393 00:18:13,130 --> 00:18:13,820 Anne Anne here, 394 00:18:14,060 --> 00:18:17,450 was there a certain promotion or something that you guys did 395 00:18:17,480 --> 00:18:20,360 that you always knew when we did this type of thing, 396 00:18:20,420 --> 00:18:21,950 it's going to bring in sales, 397 00:18:22,370 --> 00:18:23,540 we're going to see a lift. 398 00:18:23,870 --> 00:18:27,060 Yeah. We had one particular situation. 399 00:18:27,110 --> 00:18:30,440 We had moved into a brand new, 400 00:18:30,950 --> 00:18:37,040 small flat building right across the street from the largest hospital 401 00:18:37,220 --> 00:18:38,510 in town thinking, 402 00:18:38,540 --> 00:18:42,170 Oh, that would be a great area for us. 403 00:18:42,200 --> 00:18:46,550 So we opened up this small retail location near Allman hospital 404 00:18:46,550 --> 00:18:49,850 and a client call because they were supposed to pick up 405 00:18:49,880 --> 00:18:54,020 three baskets and they kept calling and saying, 406 00:18:54,020 --> 00:18:56,360 we're driving up and down the street and we can't find 407 00:18:56,360 --> 00:18:57,230 you. Well, 408 00:18:57,230 --> 00:18:58,280 Tom said, 409 00:18:58,400 --> 00:19:00,350 I told you the sign was too small, 410 00:19:00,350 --> 00:19:02,960 but the township wouldn't let me make it any larger. 411 00:19:03,470 --> 00:19:07,430 He quickly called an inflatable balloon company. 412 00:19:07,490 --> 00:19:11,360 And the next day they delivered to my surprise, 413 00:19:11,660 --> 00:19:14,930 a 30 foot Panda holding a gift basket. 414 00:19:15,710 --> 00:19:17,900 And he had it put on the roof. 415 00:19:18,140 --> 00:19:22,220 It suddenly took me jumping through hoops to get a permit 416 00:19:22,310 --> 00:19:24,620 and additional insurance, 417 00:19:24,620 --> 00:19:26,330 because if it collapsed, 418 00:19:26,330 --> 00:19:28,610 it would close down the whole highway. 419 00:19:28,970 --> 00:19:30,380 And he said, 420 00:19:30,470 --> 00:19:34,070 no customer will ever call us and tell us that they 421 00:19:34,070 --> 00:19:36,650 can't find us through this Christmas holiday, 422 00:19:36,830 --> 00:19:37,700 I guess not. 423 00:19:37,790 --> 00:19:41,660 Well, all seven floors of Aultman hospital. 424 00:19:41,810 --> 00:19:44,210 If you looked out the window on the West side, 425 00:19:44,210 --> 00:19:46,040 you could see this Panda bear. 426 00:19:46,490 --> 00:19:51,440 So I quickly called the local newspaper and said, 427 00:19:51,800 --> 00:19:53,270 I didn't give them my name. 428 00:19:53,270 --> 00:19:54,410 They didn't ask for it. 429 00:19:54,770 --> 00:19:55,460 But I said, 430 00:19:55,460 --> 00:19:56,390 I can't believe it. 431 00:19:56,390 --> 00:19:58,160 I just drove down West Tuscan. 432 00:19:58,160 --> 00:20:01,520 So the biggest Teddy bear I've ever seen holding a gift 433 00:20:01,520 --> 00:20:04,400 basket across from Aultman hospital. 434 00:20:04,400 --> 00:20:06,590 And you really need to take a look at this. 435 00:20:06,890 --> 00:20:08,840 Well, a reporter did, 436 00:20:08,840 --> 00:20:11,540 he came down and he took pictures and we were on 437 00:20:11,540 --> 00:20:13,370 the front page the next day. 438 00:20:13,760 --> 00:20:15,440 And lo and behold, 439 00:20:15,440 --> 00:20:19,580 we got 13 new businesses out of that Panda bear. 440 00:20:20,030 --> 00:20:25,550 Wow. So only because it was a promotion that Tom had 441 00:20:25,550 --> 00:20:29,630 put in place so that people could actually find us because 442 00:20:29,630 --> 00:20:31,130 it was a new location. 443 00:20:31,280 --> 00:20:34,820 It ended up being one of the best promotions we had 444 00:20:34,820 --> 00:20:36,020 ever put together. 445 00:20:36,380 --> 00:20:40,910 Wow. Because of the additional visibility and the PR you drove 446 00:20:40,910 --> 00:20:41,630 to the store. 447 00:20:41,930 --> 00:20:46,820 Absolutely. And that ad I couldn't have paid for in any 448 00:20:46,820 --> 00:20:48,940 way. That was, 449 00:20:49,590 --> 00:20:51,030 That is amazing. 450 00:20:53,520 --> 00:20:54,900 I have not heard that story before. 451 00:20:54,900 --> 00:20:55,830 So I'm loving that. 452 00:20:57,090 --> 00:21:01,860 So I'm going to go back again to 1979 and there 453 00:21:01,860 --> 00:21:05,850 probably weren't a lot of resources for you to figure out 454 00:21:05,850 --> 00:21:08,070 how to do a gift basket business. 455 00:21:08,340 --> 00:21:10,800 And I'm curious is that why? 456 00:21:11,130 --> 00:21:12,930 And I don't even know in 2005, 457 00:21:12,930 --> 00:21:13,620 I think there were, 458 00:21:13,620 --> 00:21:14,460 but not as much, 459 00:21:14,460 --> 00:21:16,500 but how did the whole, 460 00:21:16,620 --> 00:21:19,320 it used to not be the gift basket rally. 461 00:21:19,320 --> 00:21:22,860 It used to be the gift basket conference or convention. 462 00:21:23,880 --> 00:21:28,560 It was actually Debbie Pawlik put it together and it was 463 00:21:28,560 --> 00:21:32,640 called Jubilee and it was a gift basket gathering. 464 00:21:32,730 --> 00:21:39,570 And we went there in 1993 with an invitation from her. 465 00:21:39,840 --> 00:21:41,520 You went there to show, 466 00:21:41,520 --> 00:21:42,900 to teach too. 467 00:21:43,410 --> 00:21:46,020 Actually it was to go as an attendee. 468 00:21:46,200 --> 00:21:51,390 And she asked us to bring along a corporate basket because 469 00:21:51,390 --> 00:21:54,870 she had read about us somewhere and ask us to bring 470 00:21:54,870 --> 00:21:57,420 a basket along for the competition. 471 00:21:57,480 --> 00:21:59,010 Well, we did, 472 00:21:59,010 --> 00:22:03,840 it was in Chicago and all of a sudden people were 473 00:22:03,840 --> 00:22:07,290 amazed that you could put fresh muffins, 474 00:22:07,320 --> 00:22:08,580 coffee, tea, 475 00:22:08,580 --> 00:22:13,800 and candy in a corporate gift basket and sell it after 476 00:22:13,800 --> 00:22:18,630 winning the competitions for corporate design. 477 00:22:18,720 --> 00:22:23,070 She asked Tom because he was the first man to ever 478 00:22:23,070 --> 00:22:25,680 win a gift basket competition. 479 00:22:25,860 --> 00:22:30,330 She asked him to teach the following year in Las Vegas. 480 00:22:30,540 --> 00:22:36,150 So we stayed on her teaching staff as a working couple 481 00:22:36,300 --> 00:22:42,150 until she ended her career right after that Sherry rager, 482 00:22:42,360 --> 00:22:43,920 which we taught for, 483 00:22:44,310 --> 00:22:49,380 began with basket connection for a couple of years. 484 00:22:49,440 --> 00:22:51,900 And then it kind of died. 485 00:22:51,990 --> 00:22:57,090 So we started the national gift basket convention at that point 486 00:22:57,150 --> 00:22:59,160 in 2008, 487 00:22:59,340 --> 00:23:01,590 hoping to unify the industry. 488 00:23:02,130 --> 00:23:03,420 And at this convention, 489 00:23:03,420 --> 00:23:06,540 I know that there are a lot of established gift basket 490 00:23:06,540 --> 00:23:08,190 businesses and not just gift baskets, 491 00:23:08,220 --> 00:23:10,980 other types of businesses within the gifting industry, 492 00:23:10,980 --> 00:23:11,700 let's say, 493 00:23:12,780 --> 00:23:16,260 and you are doing this now to this day. 494 00:23:16,530 --> 00:23:18,930 What are you seeing from the attendees? 495 00:23:18,960 --> 00:23:22,080 What are the things that they're needing? 496 00:23:22,440 --> 00:23:23,880 And the reason I ask this question, 497 00:23:23,880 --> 00:23:26,490 just to outline it a little bit more and to bracket 498 00:23:26,490 --> 00:23:30,510 it is I'm trying to get at what types of things 499 00:23:30,510 --> 00:23:31,320 are you seeing? 500 00:23:31,320 --> 00:23:33,510 Let's say we have some listeners who are just starting a 501 00:23:33,510 --> 00:23:37,650 business. What types of things are you seeing that they are 502 00:23:37,650 --> 00:23:42,780 calming and needing from you that our listeners should be considering 503 00:23:42,780 --> 00:23:45,060 as they're starting their businesses too? 504 00:23:45,890 --> 00:23:51,290 Probably The very first one is they don't know inventory to 505 00:23:51,290 --> 00:23:55,790 order. And if they kind of use a simple mathematics, 506 00:23:56,330 --> 00:23:58,910 which we try to point out to them, 507 00:23:59,180 --> 00:24:00,800 weigh their stuffing, 508 00:24:01,400 --> 00:24:06,950 weigh it with their hand and see how many handfuls to 509 00:24:06,950 --> 00:24:08,120 fill their basket. 510 00:24:08,420 --> 00:24:11,540 And then they would be able to know how much is 511 00:24:11,540 --> 00:24:12,740 in a 10 pound box. 512 00:24:13,010 --> 00:24:18,740 I personally can fill 168 inch round baskets out of a 513 00:24:18,740 --> 00:24:19,910 10 pound box. 514 00:24:19,970 --> 00:24:24,530 And I don't think that they have been educated in knowing 515 00:24:24,530 --> 00:24:28,580 how to order inventory or priced their designs. 516 00:24:28,760 --> 00:24:32,030 And I think that that's a really big part of our 517 00:24:32,030 --> 00:24:37,850 business starting out is making sure that you are not giving 518 00:24:37,850 --> 00:24:40,940 the customer the gifts for free. 519 00:24:41,180 --> 00:24:43,640 You want to make a profit or you're not going to 520 00:24:43,640 --> 00:24:45,170 be able to stay in business. 521 00:24:45,290 --> 00:24:48,560 I think that that's a big problem in today's world. 522 00:24:48,880 --> 00:24:49,960 This Has come up before. 523 00:24:49,960 --> 00:24:53,500 And I think whether it's gift baskets or you're a jewelry 524 00:24:53,500 --> 00:24:55,900 designer, or you make cupcakes, 525 00:24:56,020 --> 00:24:57,730 we got into this conversation, 526 00:24:57,790 --> 00:25:01,450 a podcast a little while back with soap, 527 00:25:01,450 --> 00:25:04,930 making that if you are producing your product, 528 00:25:04,930 --> 00:25:10,120 it's not just the actual product that is going into whatever 529 00:25:10,120 --> 00:25:10,810 you're creating, 530 00:25:10,810 --> 00:25:12,070 whether it's the beads or, 531 00:25:12,070 --> 00:25:12,910 or all of that. 532 00:25:12,910 --> 00:25:13,510 And in this case, 533 00:25:13,510 --> 00:25:15,580 what Pam's talking about is the stuffing. 534 00:25:15,730 --> 00:25:19,540 It's so easy to overlook some of those little extra things 535 00:25:19,720 --> 00:25:22,930 and the time that it takes you to put these things 536 00:25:22,930 --> 00:25:27,160 together. So pricing is all important for sure. 537 00:25:27,340 --> 00:25:29,950 We're not going to belabor that too much here, 538 00:25:29,980 --> 00:25:32,380 but I like what Pam's talking about in terms of, 539 00:25:32,380 --> 00:25:32,530 you know, 540 00:25:32,530 --> 00:25:37,210 these are two things when you're starting a business inventory and 541 00:25:37,210 --> 00:25:40,900 pricing that you really want to pay attention to and get 542 00:25:40,900 --> 00:25:44,170 some guidance about for your particular industry, 543 00:25:44,620 --> 00:25:45,490 what would you say? 544 00:25:45,490 --> 00:25:45,700 You know, 545 00:25:45,700 --> 00:25:48,610 you were talking about all the inventory that you ended up 546 00:25:48,640 --> 00:25:52,120 having to have on hand with the bigger businesses and as 547 00:25:52,120 --> 00:25:56,170 your business was at its peak inventory in the gift basket 548 00:25:56,170 --> 00:25:59,050 business is It is. 549 00:25:59,500 --> 00:26:01,210 So you have to be very, 550 00:26:01,210 --> 00:26:06,670 very careful in how you order and seasonal. 551 00:26:06,970 --> 00:26:08,560 Our first couple years, 552 00:26:08,740 --> 00:26:12,220 my son Ben said that he was the green dumpster because 553 00:26:12,220 --> 00:26:13,630 anytime it expired, 554 00:26:13,630 --> 00:26:14,680 he had to eat it. 555 00:26:14,770 --> 00:26:15,250 Oh, darn. 556 00:26:15,310 --> 00:26:19,510 So that became a very costly situation. 557 00:26:19,520 --> 00:26:21,100 So you don't want that. 558 00:26:21,130 --> 00:26:24,550 You want to make sure that you can use your item 559 00:26:24,550 --> 00:26:29,530 and multiple applications or don't buy it unless it's a particular 560 00:26:29,530 --> 00:26:35,080 item that the corporations need and they are willing to pay 561 00:26:35,080 --> 00:26:36,670 for them by the case. 562 00:26:36,880 --> 00:26:37,690 Right. And, 563 00:26:37,720 --> 00:26:38,020 you know, 564 00:26:38,020 --> 00:26:41,560 especially as you're starting out in terms of seasonal type things, 565 00:26:41,890 --> 00:26:43,300 and it's perishable, 566 00:26:43,320 --> 00:26:46,680 it's one thing if it's not perishable and it's going to 567 00:26:46,680 --> 00:26:47,880 be an inventory item, 568 00:26:47,880 --> 00:26:49,230 you still don't want to lie because it's good. 569 00:26:49,230 --> 00:26:51,510 Might sit on the shelf until the very next season. 570 00:26:51,840 --> 00:26:57,240 But there's other ways of customizing and making things look seasonal, 571 00:26:57,240 --> 00:26:58,290 for example, 572 00:26:58,380 --> 00:27:00,690 just so that all of our listeners can relate. 573 00:27:00,690 --> 00:27:02,550 Let's talk about a necklace. 574 00:27:02,550 --> 00:27:05,730 I guess it can be a beautiful necklace, 575 00:27:05,730 --> 00:27:08,460 but you package it in red and green. 576 00:27:08,460 --> 00:27:11,130 If it's Christmas or silver and blue, 577 00:27:11,130 --> 00:27:15,270 if it Tanika and it can still be seasonally themed, 578 00:27:15,510 --> 00:27:16,830 but your actual product, 579 00:27:16,830 --> 00:27:18,570 your cost is way less. 580 00:27:18,810 --> 00:27:20,460 If you're going to have to keep it around for another 581 00:27:20,460 --> 00:27:22,170 year. So again, 582 00:27:22,170 --> 00:27:22,980 things to think about, 583 00:27:23,010 --> 00:27:24,540 especially when you're starting out, 584 00:27:24,570 --> 00:27:28,050 when the dollars are really precious dollars are precious throughout, 585 00:27:28,410 --> 00:27:29,280 always in business, 586 00:27:29,280 --> 00:27:29,850 of course, 587 00:27:30,150 --> 00:27:30,780 but you know, 588 00:27:30,780 --> 00:27:33,750 there are so many things with a startup inventory is just 589 00:27:33,750 --> 00:27:35,250 one big cost. 590 00:27:35,250 --> 00:27:38,190 So something to think about as you're getting started, 591 00:27:38,880 --> 00:27:42,630 absolutely. I want to move now into our reflection section. 592 00:27:42,930 --> 00:27:43,830 This is a look at you, 593 00:27:43,830 --> 00:27:46,650 Pam, and what's made you successful along the way. 594 00:27:47,070 --> 00:27:50,340 What is one natural trait that you have that you think 595 00:27:50,340 --> 00:27:51,360 has helped you to succeed? 596 00:27:51,740 --> 00:27:55,610 I think it might be my love for others. 597 00:27:55,850 --> 00:27:59,090 And my grandpa told me when I was two years old, 598 00:27:59,420 --> 00:28:00,860 get really far in life. 599 00:28:00,890 --> 00:28:04,460 If you just learn to smile and to help others. 600 00:28:04,670 --> 00:28:06,260 And I think that that's really, 601 00:28:06,260 --> 00:28:07,310 really important. 602 00:28:07,520 --> 00:28:11,720 I strive to be honest and give the customers more than 603 00:28:11,720 --> 00:28:15,320 what they asked for and I care and I want to 604 00:28:15,320 --> 00:28:16,880 hear their success stories. 605 00:28:16,880 --> 00:28:20,870 So I think that maybe it all goes back to again, 606 00:28:20,930 --> 00:28:22,820 my love for other people. 607 00:28:23,360 --> 00:28:25,370 Well, and then you're very authentic too. 608 00:28:25,490 --> 00:28:27,980 You're not just looking to get a dollar out of somebody. 609 00:28:28,580 --> 00:28:30,470 Now. God took care of us. 610 00:28:30,710 --> 00:28:32,300 When we sold our businesses, 611 00:28:32,330 --> 00:28:37,520 we didn't know they were for sale and customer convinced us 612 00:28:37,520 --> 00:28:38,720 that they were for sale. 613 00:28:38,870 --> 00:28:43,160 And that allowed us to live comfortably, 614 00:28:43,700 --> 00:28:47,750 help build a church and help as many people as we 615 00:28:47,750 --> 00:28:49,520 can achieve their dreams. 616 00:28:49,520 --> 00:28:52,070 And I kind of think that that's important in life. 617 00:28:52,580 --> 00:28:53,600 Agreed, but now, 618 00:28:53,960 --> 00:28:57,140 Pam, I'm not going to let that story just pass. 619 00:28:59,480 --> 00:29:02,120 Can you shorten it up and just give us a small 620 00:29:02,120 --> 00:29:06,320 version of what the heck happened and how someone decided they 621 00:29:06,320 --> 00:29:07,430 were going to buy your business, 622 00:29:07,460 --> 00:29:10,250 even though you weren't looking to sell A customer, 623 00:29:10,250 --> 00:29:11,660 came in and said, 624 00:29:11,700 --> 00:29:14,000 I really love what you do. 625 00:29:14,240 --> 00:29:15,980 And I want to do it too. 626 00:29:16,520 --> 00:29:23,120 And I've tried to get other businesses to help me start 627 00:29:23,120 --> 00:29:24,020 my business. 628 00:29:24,230 --> 00:29:26,840 And they all say they buy from you. 629 00:29:26,990 --> 00:29:29,870 So I just need to purchase your business. 630 00:29:29,930 --> 00:29:32,390 And this is what I want out of life. 631 00:29:32,690 --> 00:29:33,140 And I said, 632 00:29:33,140 --> 00:29:34,550 it's really not for sale. 633 00:29:34,700 --> 00:29:38,660 And after about three months of this nonsense, 634 00:29:38,690 --> 00:29:40,520 what I called it and the, 635 00:29:41,950 --> 00:29:46,090 I went to our attorney and he's a good friend. 636 00:29:46,120 --> 00:29:47,380 And I said, 637 00:29:47,380 --> 00:29:48,700 this is what's happening. 638 00:29:48,730 --> 00:29:54,940 And this time she had her attorney drop off a contract, 639 00:29:55,210 --> 00:29:56,440 Oh, she was serious. 640 00:29:57,100 --> 00:29:58,690 She was very serious. 641 00:29:58,720 --> 00:30:02,020 And at this point he looked at me and he said, 642 00:30:02,020 --> 00:30:04,180 there's two reasons to start a business. 643 00:30:04,180 --> 00:30:10,000 Pam one is to pass it on to your family as 644 00:30:10,000 --> 00:30:11,980 a legacy and watch it grow. 645 00:30:12,340 --> 00:30:14,020 I know your three children, 646 00:30:14,050 --> 00:30:16,420 they're tired and they don't want it. 647 00:30:16,540 --> 00:30:17,920 They've got other dreams. 648 00:30:18,310 --> 00:30:22,060 The other is to sell it at a profit and figure 649 00:30:22,060 --> 00:30:23,800 out what you want to do with the rest of your 650 00:30:23,800 --> 00:30:26,200 life. And I'm telling you, 651 00:30:26,200 --> 00:30:28,000 this is a really good offer. 652 00:30:28,450 --> 00:30:31,060 Take it to the accountant and see what she says. 653 00:30:31,360 --> 00:30:35,280 So we did and true stories. 654 00:30:35,280 --> 00:30:35,950 She said, 655 00:30:35,950 --> 00:30:36,820 why in the heck, 656 00:30:36,820 --> 00:30:38,590 didn't you sign this awhile ago? 657 00:30:38,800 --> 00:30:41,470 And Tom said, 658 00:30:41,470 --> 00:30:43,030 well, we're going to pray about it. 659 00:30:43,120 --> 00:30:47,650 We went into church and the minister stopped before the service 660 00:30:47,650 --> 00:30:50,590 put his hand on Tom's shoulder and said, 661 00:30:50,590 --> 00:30:52,660 Tom, I had a vision last night. 662 00:30:52,690 --> 00:30:54,160 I don't know what it means. 663 00:30:54,250 --> 00:30:55,690 We were standing on a Hill. 664 00:30:55,690 --> 00:30:56,620 You and I, 665 00:30:56,620 --> 00:31:00,730 and we were with a surveyor and I want to go 666 00:31:00,730 --> 00:31:03,400 to lunch and try to figure out what this vision is. 667 00:31:03,910 --> 00:31:05,530 Tom looked at me and said, 668 00:31:05,770 --> 00:31:07,330 I believe that we should sell it. 669 00:31:08,400 --> 00:31:09,240 I think so. 670 00:31:11,550 --> 00:31:12,660 I don't think you need a more, 671 00:31:12,660 --> 00:31:13,860 a bigger sign than that. 672 00:31:14,380 --> 00:31:15,480 The church was built. 673 00:31:17,010 --> 00:31:18,210 Oh wow. 674 00:31:18,660 --> 00:31:19,410 We, you know, 675 00:31:19,410 --> 00:31:23,730 we're fortunate enough to be able to help a congregation that 676 00:31:23,730 --> 00:31:29,340 we loved and our family and grow in a different aspect 677 00:31:29,610 --> 00:31:30,480 of the business. 678 00:31:30,480 --> 00:31:32,070 We were already teaching. 679 00:31:32,130 --> 00:31:35,310 We were on the staff at fancy food and world tea 680 00:31:35,310 --> 00:31:39,690 expo and 19 gift marts across the country, 681 00:31:39,720 --> 00:31:43,200 Jamaica national farmers association. 682 00:31:43,230 --> 00:31:44,520 And Tom said, 683 00:31:44,550 --> 00:31:46,800 let's just expand on that. 684 00:31:46,920 --> 00:31:47,880 And that's what we did. 685 00:31:48,150 --> 00:31:49,890 Wow. Now give biz listeners. 686 00:31:49,890 --> 00:31:51,990 I just want to make sure that you got what we 687 00:31:51,990 --> 00:31:52,890 just heard here. 688 00:31:53,430 --> 00:31:55,500 They started a gift basket business. 689 00:31:55,980 --> 00:31:56,670 It grew, 690 00:31:56,670 --> 00:31:59,130 as we've already heard when they sold it, 691 00:31:59,190 --> 00:32:03,270 they were able to build a church and have a nice 692 00:32:03,300 --> 00:32:04,980 nest egg for their future, 693 00:32:05,010 --> 00:32:07,170 even though they decided to continue working. 694 00:32:07,710 --> 00:32:10,650 So I want you guys all to think for yourself. 695 00:32:10,680 --> 00:32:12,810 If there's something that you're looking at doing, 696 00:32:12,840 --> 00:32:14,790 no matter how small, 697 00:32:15,450 --> 00:32:16,980 maybe it's a jewelry company, 698 00:32:16,980 --> 00:32:18,240 maybe it's a bakery. 699 00:32:18,270 --> 00:32:20,370 Maybe it's a gift basket business. 700 00:32:20,610 --> 00:32:23,940 Look at what Pam and Tom were able to accomplish. 701 00:32:24,450 --> 00:32:25,350 None of your ideas, 702 00:32:25,350 --> 00:32:28,440 if you have this type of passion is too small. 703 00:32:28,950 --> 00:32:29,670 So that was, 704 00:32:29,850 --> 00:32:32,550 I'm so glad we stopped Pam and went through that. 705 00:32:32,730 --> 00:32:36,540 So, so glad it was a huge point. 706 00:32:36,600 --> 00:32:40,970 Those are things we don't always share while You're gonna share 707 00:32:40,970 --> 00:32:41,690 it with me. 708 00:32:42,680 --> 00:32:43,760 And as you know, 709 00:32:43,760 --> 00:32:46,130 our children grew up in our business. 710 00:32:46,160 --> 00:32:50,150 Our grandchildren grew up in our business and they're still, 711 00:32:50,240 --> 00:32:51,140 God loved them. 712 00:32:51,170 --> 00:32:54,800 They still come forward to help with our rallies and our 713 00:32:54,800 --> 00:32:56,150 conventions today. 714 00:32:56,150 --> 00:32:59,090 I couldn't do without any of them. 715 00:32:59,450 --> 00:33:00,500 They're awesome. 716 00:33:00,740 --> 00:33:06,860 They truly know every aspect of our company and because of 717 00:33:06,860 --> 00:33:10,760 the gift basket business that people didn't think was a real 718 00:33:10,760 --> 00:33:12,980 occupation back in the seventies, 719 00:33:13,280 --> 00:33:17,750 they have lived a comfortable life and love what they have 720 00:33:17,750 --> 00:33:19,600 become. Absolutely. 721 00:33:20,200 --> 00:33:20,620 All right. 722 00:33:20,650 --> 00:33:21,670 So we're going to move on. 723 00:33:22,030 --> 00:33:25,900 What tool do you use regularly to help you keep productive 724 00:33:25,930 --> 00:33:28,600 or to create some type of balance in your life? 725 00:33:28,720 --> 00:33:30,040 Well, that, 726 00:33:30,040 --> 00:33:34,120 one's a little surprising because the best tool that I have 727 00:33:34,720 --> 00:33:36,940 is probably my friends, 728 00:33:37,210 --> 00:33:41,410 because I find that I don't need to know everything I 729 00:33:41,410 --> 00:33:44,560 can call up on my friends to help me. 730 00:33:44,740 --> 00:33:46,480 I knew nothing about Skype. 731 00:33:46,540 --> 00:33:46,990 Thank you, 732 00:33:46,990 --> 00:33:50,080 Sue. We're recording On Skype for anyone who doesn't get that. 733 00:33:50,680 --> 00:33:56,170 I surround myself with friends that have the knowledge that maybe 734 00:33:56,170 --> 00:33:57,370 I don't have. 735 00:33:57,430 --> 00:34:03,670 And I love being able to network within my own friends. 736 00:34:03,700 --> 00:34:07,840 And of course our teaching staff is amazing. 737 00:34:08,050 --> 00:34:11,260 The apps that I use mostly on my phone would be 738 00:34:11,260 --> 00:34:14,410 my wonder list and my photo grid. 739 00:34:15,340 --> 00:34:16,300 I know Wonderlust, 740 00:34:16,300 --> 00:34:19,810 what's what what's PhotoGrid Photo grid. 741 00:34:19,810 --> 00:34:23,710 I can take all of my pictures and it just magically 742 00:34:23,710 --> 00:34:26,290 makes them into a collage. 743 00:34:26,590 --> 00:34:31,300 And I use it all the time for posting pictures of 744 00:34:31,360 --> 00:34:32,530 people at the rally. 745 00:34:33,100 --> 00:34:34,090 And I love it. 746 00:34:34,630 --> 00:34:35,800 What book have you read lately? 747 00:34:35,800 --> 00:34:38,980 They do you think our customers would find value in Number 748 00:34:38,980 --> 00:34:42,610 one? It's the purpose driven life by Rick Warren? 749 00:34:42,640 --> 00:34:44,650 What on earth am I here for? 750 00:34:45,340 --> 00:34:48,940 Our Bible group is actually working on that right now. 751 00:34:49,090 --> 00:34:53,440 This is the second time we've used Rick Warren and I 752 00:34:53,440 --> 00:34:59,080 find every day something that I can apply to my life. 753 00:34:59,080 --> 00:35:00,830 So it's very important. 754 00:35:01,210 --> 00:35:04,330 Wonderful. And give biz listeners just as you're listening to the 755 00:35:04,330 --> 00:35:05,320 podcast today, 756 00:35:05,470 --> 00:35:07,930 you can also listen to audio books with ease. 757 00:35:08,140 --> 00:35:10,900 I've teamed up with audible so you can get an audio 758 00:35:10,900 --> 00:35:14,590 book, just like the purpose driven life for free. 759 00:35:14,890 --> 00:35:16,870 All you need to do is go to gift business book 760 00:35:16,900 --> 00:35:19,090 that com and make a selection. 761 00:35:19,120 --> 00:35:19,870 That's gift biz, 762 00:35:19,870 --> 00:35:22,570 book.com. All right, 763 00:35:22,570 --> 00:35:25,210 Pam, we're going to put on our show notes page, 764 00:35:25,270 --> 00:35:26,800 all of the contact information. 765 00:35:26,800 --> 00:35:28,660 So there'll be information on your Facebook group, 766 00:35:28,680 --> 00:35:29,590 social media, 767 00:35:29,620 --> 00:35:30,400 all of that. 768 00:35:30,460 --> 00:35:35,140 We're also going to link up information to the rally so 769 00:35:35,140 --> 00:35:35,710 that people, 770 00:35:35,710 --> 00:35:38,310 if anyone's in the gifting or gift basket business, 771 00:35:38,310 --> 00:35:40,770 and you want to know more about the rally, 772 00:35:40,770 --> 00:35:43,410 which is the conference that Pam and Tom put on, 773 00:35:43,560 --> 00:35:45,450 we'll have that information there. 774 00:35:45,600 --> 00:35:48,210 But if there were one or two sites for those folks 775 00:35:48,210 --> 00:35:50,190 who are not near a computer right now, 776 00:35:50,190 --> 00:35:51,060 they're walking their dog, 777 00:35:51,090 --> 00:35:51,840 they're doing laundry. 778 00:35:51,840 --> 00:35:52,620 They're in the shop, 779 00:35:52,620 --> 00:35:53,690 straightening up stocks, 780 00:35:53,690 --> 00:35:54,600 something like that. 781 00:35:55,080 --> 00:35:58,740 Where would you suggest they go to learn more about you? 782 00:35:59,600 --> 00:36:01,100 Probably gift basket, 783 00:36:01,100 --> 00:36:05,210 school.com. That's probably the easiest to remember. 784 00:36:05,660 --> 00:36:08,150 Okay. And a lot of things linked right into that site, 785 00:36:08,150 --> 00:36:14,060 right? It does ultimate gift show links into their national gift 786 00:36:14,060 --> 00:36:19,340 basket convention lists into there and a gift basket professional. 787 00:36:20,330 --> 00:36:21,530 Okay. Now PM, 788 00:36:21,560 --> 00:36:23,600 I'm going to invite you to dare to dream. 789 00:36:24,080 --> 00:36:26,450 I'd like to present you with a virtual gift. 790 00:36:26,660 --> 00:36:31,070 It's a magical box containing unlimited possibilities for your future. 791 00:36:31,430 --> 00:36:35,390 This is your dream or your goal of almost unreachable Heights. 792 00:36:35,420 --> 00:36:38,900 And remember I'm saying unreachable Heights that you would wish to 793 00:36:38,900 --> 00:36:43,220 obtain. Please accept this gift and open it in our presence. 794 00:36:43,490 --> 00:36:45,140 What is inside your box? 795 00:36:46,820 --> 00:36:47,330 First of all, 796 00:36:47,330 --> 00:36:48,980 you just gave me cold chills. 797 00:36:51,770 --> 00:36:55,430 My box would contain pixie dust. 798 00:36:56,390 --> 00:37:03,050 Okay. Pixie dust that I would probably sprinkle on every gift 799 00:37:03,050 --> 00:37:07,580 provider in the universe to reach out to them, 800 00:37:07,580 --> 00:37:12,500 to let them know that I'm here and at their service, 801 00:37:12,950 --> 00:37:16,220 the larger the group at our rally, 802 00:37:16,640 --> 00:37:20,030 the more people that I can reach out to on a 803 00:37:20,030 --> 00:37:21,440 one-to-one basis, 804 00:37:21,650 --> 00:37:25,730 that would probably make me the happiest person in the world. 805 00:37:26,000 --> 00:37:31,520 So I guess my box would be full of pixie dust. 806 00:37:31,910 --> 00:37:32,870 I have to tell you, 807 00:37:32,870 --> 00:37:35,900 I thought you might change the box into a basket. 808 00:37:36,350 --> 00:37:38,870 So I guess I, 809 00:37:38,990 --> 00:37:41,090 I thought about that to begin with, 810 00:37:41,450 --> 00:37:45,110 however, You didn't want the pixie dust to escape until I 811 00:37:45,110 --> 00:37:46,130 could find the right piece. 812 00:37:46,910 --> 00:37:51,530 Absolutely. I'm with you on that. 813 00:37:53,060 --> 00:37:53,780 Oh my gosh. 814 00:37:53,840 --> 00:37:55,340 Well gift biz listeners, 815 00:37:55,370 --> 00:37:58,520 and we have learned so much from Pam today and I, 816 00:37:58,610 --> 00:37:59,000 since I, 817 00:37:59,000 --> 00:38:00,140 you obviously can tell, 818 00:38:00,140 --> 00:38:01,400 I know Pam personally, 819 00:38:01,580 --> 00:38:05,180 and I can tell you that I have not met a 820 00:38:05,180 --> 00:38:10,370 more generous and truly passionate person in terms of when she 821 00:38:10,370 --> 00:38:14,300 talks about paying it forward and helping everybody else as she's 822 00:38:14,300 --> 00:38:16,970 going to sprinkle that little pixie dust all over the place. 823 00:38:17,300 --> 00:38:19,220 It is absolutely true. 824 00:38:19,850 --> 00:38:20,570 And Pam, 825 00:38:20,600 --> 00:38:22,910 I'm not sure what color that pixie dust is. 826 00:38:23,560 --> 00:38:28,070 Sparkle. You know that well, 827 00:38:28,070 --> 00:38:29,180 I'm sure it will. 828 00:38:29,180 --> 00:38:32,150 And I just want to throw some back on you because 829 00:38:32,420 --> 00:38:36,190 you have just offered us so much valuable today. 830 00:38:36,220 --> 00:38:39,400 I appreciate your taking the time we kind of put this 831 00:38:39,400 --> 00:38:41,860 together a little bit quickly because I really, 832 00:38:41,860 --> 00:38:45,550 really wanted her to be the guest for this very special 833 00:38:45,550 --> 00:38:47,560 episode of gift biz on wrapped. 834 00:38:47,770 --> 00:38:48,520 So thank you, 835 00:38:48,520 --> 00:38:50,410 Pam. I so appreciate it. 836 00:38:50,620 --> 00:38:53,320 And may your candle always burn bright thing? 837 00:38:54,360 --> 00:39:01,020 We love you Learn How to work smarter while developing and 838 00:39:01,020 --> 00:39:02,040 growing your business. 839 00:39:02,220 --> 00:39:05,780 Download our guide called 25 free tools to enhance your business 840 00:39:05,790 --> 00:39:06,300 in life. 841 00:39:06,510 --> 00:39:09,120 It's our gift to you and available at gift biz, 842 00:39:09,150 --> 00:39:13,590 unwrap.com/tools. Thanks for listening and be sure to join us for 843 00:39:13,590 --> 00:39:14,070 the next step. 844 00:39:14,130 --> 00:39:18,600 So today's show is sponsored by the ribbon print company, 845 00:39:19,320 --> 00:39:21,960 looking for a new income source for your gift business. 846 00:39:22,200 --> 00:39:26,580 Customization is more popular now than ever render products of your 847 00:39:26,580 --> 00:39:28,530 logo or print a happy birthday, 848 00:39:28,530 --> 00:39:30,300 Jessica ribbon to add to a gift, 849 00:39:30,360 --> 00:39:33,480 right? A checkout it's all done right in your shop or 850 00:39:33,480 --> 00:39:35,010 across studio in seconds. 851 00:39:35,490 --> 00:39:38,040 Check out the ribbon print company.com 852 00:39:38,070 --> 00:39:41,670 for more information after you listened to the show, 853 00:39:41,700 --> 00:39:43,110 if you like what you're hearing, 854 00:39:43,380 --> 00:39:46,140 make sure to jump over and subscribe to the show on 855 00:39:46,140 --> 00:39:49,950 iTunes. That way you'll automatically get the newest episodes when they 856 00:39:49,950 --> 00:39:50,490 go live. 857 00:39:51,150 --> 00:39:53,880 And thank you to those who have already left a rating 858 00:39:53,940 --> 00:39:58,470 and review by subscribing rating and reviewing you help to increase 859 00:39:58,470 --> 00:40:00,450 the visibility of the gift biz on ramp. 860 00:40:01,020 --> 00:40:02,670 It's a great way to pay it forward, 861 00:40:02,850 --> 00:40:05,880 to help others with their entrepreneurial journey as well. 862 00:40:07,890 --> 00:40:10,350 Would you like to be on the show or do you 863 00:40:10,350 --> 00:40:14,400 know someone who can provide valuable insight from their experiences? 864 00:40:14,880 --> 00:40:15,630 If so, 865 00:40:15,690 --> 00:40:16,890 we'd love to hear from you. 866 00:40:17,190 --> 00:40:20,310 All you need to do is submit a form for consideration. 867 00:40:20,880 --> 00:40:22,110 You can access the form. 868 00:40:22,230 --> 00:40:26,460 That gift is unwrapped dial forward slash yes.